Letter-scale



T. J. 'LUMIS.

LETTER SCALE.

(No Model.)

No. 331,802.. Patented Den. 8, 1885.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS J. LUMIS, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT.

LETTER-SCALE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 331,802, dated December 8, 1885.

Application filed July 25, 1885.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS J. LUMIs, of Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Letter-Scales, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, where Figure 1 is aperspective view of my device, illustrating the manner of using it in weighing a letter. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same device, illustrating its use as a paper cutter.

The object of my invention is to provide an instrument that is of special utility in weighing letters, small packages, and the like, and one that is also usable as a papercutter, the whole device being simple, cheap, and durable; and my invention consists in a blade having a handle, a scale, and supporting a weighing-spring,the blade forming the guide for the spring, and serving also, in some cases, as a paper-cutter, as more particularly hereinafter described.

In the accompanying drawings, the letter a denotes the blade of the instrument, which is preferably a fiat piece of metal, having through a portion of its length a slot, a; b, the handle, which is made of any suitable material, as wood, and in which the blade is secured; c, a leaf-spring with one end secured to the body of the instrument, preferably by inserting it in the handle alongside of the blade, so that it lies in a plane at right angles to the plane of the blade, curves outward from the handle and then backward through the slot, and terminates on the other side of the blade in a letter-clamp, formed in this instance by bending the end of the spring into a'hook or loop, 0, which opens upward or toward the top of blade, and this spring is preferably of thin steel bent to the C shape, as shown; but its particular form is not essential, so long as its free end is movable along the blade or guide a, on which is marked a scale, d, of ounces and parts ofan ounce, of any desired length and minuteness, depending, of course, on the capacity of the spring.

Although the blade is formed, preferably, of flat steel with the longitudinal slot, I do not limit myself to such construction, as it is sufficient for the purposes of my invention if the blade affords a guide to the moving spring,

Serial No. 172,613. (No model.)

and also space to support the scale which is marked upon or fixed to the blade along the path of the spring. The fiat form of blade with aprojecting point of some length is preferable, as it is adapted better than any other form to use as a paper-cutter.

The manner of using my device as a springbalance for weighing letters is clearly shown in Fig. 1, where the device is held by the handle in an upright position, and a letter held between the spring-jaws of the letterclamp causes the spring to be depressed a dis tance depending upon the weight of the letter, in the case illustrated not quite an ounce. Its use as a paper-cutter is clearly shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, where the blade is shown as inserted under the flap of an envelope, for the opening of which the device is peculiarly fitted.

The whole instrument is small, light, and meets an existing demand for such an instrument for use on a desk, and I do not limit myselfto the particular material, special form, or combination of parts herein shown.

I claim as my invention- 1. In combination, a blade, (I, having aslot, a, a handle, I), and a graduated scale, (Z, and a curved or bent spring, 0, which passes through the slot in the blade, has one end fast to the body of the device, and bears at its free end a letter-clamp, all substantially as described.

2. In combination with a blade having a handle and a scale marked along the blade, a bent spring with one end fast to the body of the device, the free end bearing a letter-clamp and supported against lateral play by contact with the blade, all substantially as described.

3. The combination spring-balance and paper-cutter, consisting of the handle bearing a blade and a curved spring with one fast and one free end, the latter terminating in a letterclamp, and extending across the blade, the latter having a graduated scale along the limited path of the spring, and having a point or extension beyond the play of the spring, all substantially as described.

THOMAS J. LUMIS.

Witnesses:

CHAS. L. BURDETT, HENRY FREEMAN, 

